Lecture at the IWPR: «The principles of religious tolerance, freedom and human rights in Islam»

Representative Office of the Institute for War and Peace Reporting (IWPR) in the Kyrgyz Republic held a lecture on “The principles of religious tolerance, tolerance and human rights in Islam” for students in Naryn and Karakol within the framework of the project on the rule of law, funded by the EU and the Government of Norway.

 

In connection with the rapid development of Islam, the IWPR launched a series of lectures on the principles of tolerance and respect for religious diversity for students in Kyrgyzstan.

 

The lecturers were Frontbek kyzy Jamal, head of the NGO “Mutakalim”, and Indira Aslanova, specialist in religious studies, head of the scientific-analytical department of the Center for Religious Studies.

 

During the lecture, Indira Aslanova told how the international pacts on civil and political rights and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights are correlated with the concept of human rights that exists in Muslim tradition. Also she spoke of separation, when religion is used as a slogan to attract religiously illiterate population into the terrorist ranks, and of the true theoretical postulates that lie in the basis of the religion itself.

 

Jamal Frontbek kyzy spoke about what a person could do to create a constructive and peaceful society, using simple examples from everyday life. She encouraged students to be tolerant and kinder, to avoid intrigues and gossips and to treat the faults and weaknesses of others with understanding.

 

“This lecture was very useful, and all information received today was new to us. I believe it was a unique opportunity to receive answers to many questions from experts in this field. In our university, the number of young girls in hijabs and men who are deeply immersed in the religion is increasing, and such lectures help guide them in the right direction, to avoid any extremist influence”, said Narynbek kyzy Meerim, a student of the third year of Naryn State University (NSU).

 

Lecturers elaborated on the activities of terrorist organizations, in particular, the activities of the ISIS. To the surprise of experts, many of the students did not know about the subversive activities of that organization.

 

“Today we are faced with the problem of education and behavior of the young. Perhaps, this is due to the fact that at home, this issue is not given the due attention, or because of the lack of a relevant subject in the curriculum, and in this regard, this lecture was very rele

vant and useful. It is necessary to increase the frequency of this kind of lectures on other topics, too”, said Gulnara Mambetalieva, teacher at NSU.

 

The lecture with participation of Indira Aslanova, expert in religious studies, and Jamal Frontbek kyzy, head of “Mutakalim”, on the topic “The principles of religious tolerance, tolerance and human rights in Islam” for the students of Naryn State University and of the branch of the Moscow Institute of Entrepreneurship and Law in Karakol were held on September 30 and October 1, 2015.